Clay halts private road paving

Saturday

Oct 29, 2011 at 8:40 PM

MIDDLEBURG - Clay County has halted plans to pave a private, rural road following complaints about financial strains it created for current and potential property owners.

Blacktop work was supposed to start this month on Clifford Lane, a half-mile path that leads to mostly modest houses and trailers. Clay was using a new set of guidelines under which the county bid out the contract for the project while the property owners paid.

In the end, the road would remain private.

The winning bid from Orlando-based Hubbard Construction was a base price of $315,000. Divided among the 16 landowners, that would have come to assessments of about $24,000 to $40,000 apiece, depending on whether they paid up front or financed.

Maintenance is not included in the cost.

But at least two homeowners have had problems with banks because of the County Commission's September decision to move forward, according to County Manager Stephanie Kopelousos. One wasn't able to refinance a mortgage because of the added cost of the road. Another wasn't able to sell a home and lot because of the increased expense.

Those were unintended consequences, Kopelousos said.

"Anytime you start a new program, there's going to be some bumps in the road. We want to make sure that we're getting this right," Kopelousos said. "We believe in paving this road. That's what people want out there."

Over the years, residents of Clifford Lane have seen the road wash out in heavy rains. It's full of potholes, and the U.S. Postal Service has threatened to stop delivering mail. Residents worried emergency responders might not be able to make the trip.

Various landowners have graded the bumpy road and filled holes from time to time. But not everyone chipped in money.

Last summer, the county polled Clifford property owners on whether to do the work, and nine of 16 said yes. Even those that did not give positive votes seemed to want the improvements.

But many gawked at the cost. Some said they simply couldn't afford it and were at risk of losing their homes at tax sale.

'TOO MUCH OF A BURDEN'Frankie Odom was among those who said she would find some way to pay, and that likely would be spreading it out over 20 years with interest. But she said she never imagined having to pay as much for the road as her 2 acres and single-wide trailer are worth.

A fee of $2,000 a year to cover road costs would be five times what she pays in property taxes now.

"It was too much of a burden for 16 families," Odom said. "I'm just glad they changed their minds. It's a learning curve for them, too."

Odom said the small community probably will go back to patching the road itself until the county decides what to do.

Clifford Lane is in Commissioner Ronnie Robinson's district. He's pushed for the road to be paved. He said during an Oct. 11 meeting that the county may have to take a different approach.

Maybe it will only keep the road graded, Robinson said. Or asphalt could be used, but the road might be only 10 feet wide. And Clay might need to consider the number of property owners in these situations. If there were 80, for instance, the cost to individuals would be much lower.

There are other private roads that need to be paved, Robinson said, so the county will work this out.

"It's just a little roadblock," Robinson said. "It's not going to work on Clifford Lane today. It will work on Clifford Lane before we get through."

adam.causey@jacksonville.com, (904) 359-4025

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